The Central Methodist women’s basketball team picked up a 69-48 road victory over Graceland University Saturday afternoon in Lamoni, Iowa.

Central improves to 10-7 and 5-4 in the Heart of America, while Graceland drops to 1-16 and 0-9 in conference action.

The Eagles trailed 18-14 after the first quarter but responded with an intense second period, outscoring Graceland 20-14 to take a 34-32 lead into halftime.

CMU took complete control after the break, limiting the Yellowjackets to just 16 total points in the second half, including only six in the fourth quarter, while pulling away for the decisive win.

Kaitlyn Patke led all scorers with 21 points and added 14 rebounds for a double-double. She also contributed three blocks to anchor the Eagles defensively.

Maizen Williams followed with 14 points on 6-for-8 shooting, including two 3-pointers. Asnate Gerke finished with 12 points, five rebounds, four steals, and a block, while Tayla Robinson added 10 points, three assists, and two steals.

As a team, Central shot 46.7 percent from the field and held a 33-27 rebounding advantage. The Eagles were active defensively, forcing 17 turnovers and recording 12 steals, which helped fuel their second-half surge.

CMU held the Yellowjackets to just 35.5 percent shooting and 15 percent from 3-point range.

The Eagles will travel to St. Louis for a mid-week matchup against Missouri Baptist at 5:30 p.m. tonight (Wednesday). They return to Puckett Fieldhouse on Saturday at 2 p.m. against Peru State and host Baker for a 5:30 p.m. game next Wednesday.